Sky News discussion about weight loss pills this morning

[ffsarewedoingthis]

They’re going through the daily papers and as per usual, three thin women are saying the same things, “there’s no long term data” (incorrect, these drugs have been in use for decades), “people who don’t need them use them” (very rare, and we don’t ban things like alcohol because kids sometimes get hold of it), “there’s a pressure to take them” (no, there’s not, if anything it’s the opposite).

AIBU to be utterly fed up of this discourse? I’m on WLI and have been for the last two years. I’ve lost ten and a half stone. It has quite literally saved my life.

Why, when they’re having these discussions, do they never discuss the fact that being obese is much much worse than any potential side effects of these drugs? Why don’t they discuss that almost every study coming out has been overwhelmingly positive, with noted positive cardiac benefits? The benefits in terms of addiction etc., are known as well.

The news trying to put people off these drugs is scary, especially when it’s three women who have obviously never experienced what it’s like to be morbidly obese and feeling like you’re suffocating in your own body.

Define need. The NHS has to have strict criteria because they can’t afford to prescribe them to everyone who could do with losing weight, they have to have a level of prioritisation in a universal healthcare scheme that does not have infinite resources. Just because the NHS cannot afford to prescribe it to more people doesn’t mean the people outside of their prescribing criteria don’t “need” them, or would not benefit from them.

No one feels threatened, what would you like to discuss.

would it be anything negative by any chance? Some scare stories you read? Made up stuff? False information? Or would you like to discuss rhe benefits, the positives to society and the individual

you can discuss anything you wish. If you post misinformation it will be corrected. You can categorise that as threatening to those on the drugs. They can classify it as correcting misinformation.

Because this does not need to be medicalised, medicated, side-effects and malnurishment accepted. Being less greedy and eating less would be a much better method to achieve weight loss for everyone but the drugs companies.

Always makes me laugh when people talk about the drug companies profiting from WLIs as if they weren't all making out like bandits from the side effects of obesity before the jabs arrived.

As for the rest, people eating less would be a better way to achieve weight loss if it actually worked. It doesn't. Telling people to eat less and move more has failed, which is why you won't be able to provide any evidence for your claim that it would be better. Humans have an unfortunate habit of behaving like humans.

Oh wow. Gosh I wish I’d thought of that.

Which one was it out of interest?

What do you want to discuss?

Gosh I wish I’d thought of that when I was 16 and in a cycle of only eating 200 calories a day for days on end, just to end up binging worse than ever!

This.

It is. I live in a naice affluent south east village and fucking everyone is openly on them, trading names of websites that dont check carefully, discussing prices, comparing side effects.

All the women who used to be a size 14 or 16 are suddenly a 6-8 with ozempic face. You know when people are on it because they drop the wait crazy fast despite being 45 and perimenopausal.

Honestly I'm not making it up.

WLI should absolutely be available. To people who are really overweight, from their GP, with a face to face appointment and weigh in and discussion of diet, exercise and other health issues.

Yes, let’s bog down GPs with even more work!

Loads of people are. This is not news its incredibly common.

Agreed.

I wouldn’t ban them, I think they need better regulation.

A colleague lost 6 stone… by eating 600-800 calories a day, using MJ.

There needs to be better accountability for both users and prescribers.

What sort of thing do you have in mind?

For actually overweight people it should pay off in terms of reducing diabetes, heart disease and other obesity related poor health. Kind of the whole point of preventative medicine.

What does 'actually overweight' and 'really overweight' mean? I think with these things it's best to give numbers.

If you mean obese then the WLIs likely will if they're given long term access, absolutely. GPs giving diet and exercise advice doesn't have any record of success though, I'd want to be careful we weren't just wasting valuable appointment time.

Large fines for organisations found prescribing to people who are not overweight. Random spot checks for compliance, funded by fines. Licenses to he a prescriber, license removed if caught breaching regulations. No online/mail service prescriptions only from proper pharmacies with ID checks etc.

Face to face checks - online fine, if need be. Video calls instead of just uploading pictures.

Evidence of weight and weight loss, anyone can fill a form in.

Physical prescribing where possible to avoid people either getting it when they wouldn’t actually qualify, or getting it to give to others.

They don’t even have plausible deniability at the moment.

There are people just making themselves look bigger in pictures, or fudging their weight on the scales.

No system is perfect, but one so open to abuse should really have better checks in place.

I think .. people should just concern themselves with their own situation ....
My view on me ..
I have no opinions on what other people do
I have lost 12 stone on WLI
And I have more to loose,but I'm trying to come of them very slowly and getting my body slowly used to managing on less so I can eventually come of them.
I wouldn't of touched them with a barge pole if I hadn't been at the end of my rope with my weight.i literally couldn't stand long enough to cook a meal.
I also wouldn't of gone on them if I hadn't had my gallbladder out years ago .
It took me a year thinking it through and worried about side effects, before finally deciding the current weight was worse for me than any potential side effects of the injections .
I personally would never of risked it for a stone or two of ..
But each to their own .
I will be very glad when I'm off them

No i meant there should be diet and exercise advice given with WLI prescription, to ensure people continue to get proper nutrition when eating less and to prevent muscle loss.

Okay and for those who already struggle to get in at their GP? There’s 7 million people estimated to be on the jabs in the UK now. That’s an extra 7 million appointments every month

Just checking you know lots of non-overweight people fit the prescription criteria because of maintenance prescribing. But I'm not against fines for those breaching regulations.

The last one unfortunately raises the be careful what you wish for issue, for a number of reasons. One is that any barriers mean some people won't be able to get legitimate access any more- attending in person is a barrier. That creates a group of people who are currently being safely prescribed, who then won't be, who will either go for a dodgy supplier or are likely to stay/return to obesity, with all the associated issues with the NHS.

Another is that what you're proposing would require extra retail pharmacist appointment capacity. We already have shortages in many key roles. Unless you can explain how this is going to create more staff supply, those providers will have to come from somewhere. We need to think carefully about whether this is the best use of their time.

I'm also interested in whether you know it's quite common for medications to be prescribed/continued prescription without the sort of scrutiny you mention. The NHS takes people's word for it all the time for things like weight and BP checks. Why are WLIs different?

@ChunkyMonkey36 we cross posted but this goes for you too. The difficulty with wanting extra checks and resources is that those have to come from somewhere. It's one thing saying why you think they'd be good, quite another to explain where this extra capacity is going to come from and why it's better used on your proposals than what it's currently going on.

This, but also people who are routinely administered those drugs are under medical observation for their condition. Most people that will get these drugs will do so based on BMI alone and so nobody knows if they have something underlying that needs to be addressed / can worsen with these drugs.

I personally dont like the narrative around them on day time telly but I do have some questions.

The majority of people watching that prog will not be on the drugs - so it gives them all a chance to feel self righteous or critical of others.
A bit like the complaint of too many being diagnosed anxious or suffering from adhd.